One man has been charged in the case, the woman is being sought, and sheriff’s officials are asking the public’s help in finding the third suspect. His photo was released by Crime Stoppers on Friday.

“Without the video, we would have no case whatever,” Bolter said. “I’m grateful they were foolish enough to do it.”

The theft of eight brass military markers was discovered on April 5, 2013 at the Victoria Drive cemetery. There were no leads in the case until two weeks ago, Bolter said.

Bolter said a repo-man was cleaning out a car he had repossessed and found a photo card, which he viewed in hopes of returning it. The video showed people grinding brass markers to remove the names.

He turned the card over to San Diego police, who also viewed it and used facial recognition software to try to identify the trio. Bolter said the software led them to the two suspects.

Bolter found one, Colin Bechter, 27, already in jail on unrelated charges. He was re-booked on Tuesday and arraigned Friday on eight counts of damaging cemetery property, one count of grand theft and one of possessing stolen goods. Bechter pleaded not guilty, a county prosecutor said.

The woman has been identified but not found. Bolter did not release her name.

Authorities said the missing plaques were valued at $3,500, but their worth to a recycler as scrap metal was more like $25 apiece.

About 450 veterans are buried at Alpine Cemetery. After the thefts, the grounds were fenced and security cameras were installed.

Anyone with a tip on the case may reach Crime Stoppers anonymously at (888) 580-8477 or at www.crimestoppers.org. A reward of up to $1,000 is offered for information leading to an arrest.